Not only do you have
the wrong temple, but you have the wrong people suffering
the great tribulation.
THE BIBLE ON:-
1. Wrath.
2. Judgment.
3. Universal Judgment.
4. Persecution.
5. Tribulation.
6. Great Tribulation.
The Biblical authors did not read what we wrote, nor interpret what we said. The Bible does not use our own personal choices of terminology.
The biblical authors used their own terminology when they recorded
what Jesus said about tribulation and great tribulation, or when the apostles wrote about
the tribulation that the saints would experience in the world, choosing the words they would use in reference to this tribulation of the saints -
and this includes the reference to the greatest period of tribulation that would ever be.
They also chose their own terminology when they spoke about
the judgment / wrath of God that will come upon the world.
Christian Bible-teachers can - and many do - use their own terminology and ignore the Biblical terminology used by the authors of the Bible when they interpret the Bible the way they choose to, turning what is written about tribulation and great tribulation in the scriptures into a reference to the judgment / wrath of God that is to come upon the world.
However, the Bible does not use our terminology. It uses its own. We can either align our interpretation with Biblical terminology, or continue to misconstrue what is written.
PERSECUTION, TRIBULATION, & GREAT TRIBULATION
Persecution of Jesus: John 5:16
Persecution of Christians: Matthew 5:10-12; John 15:20; Acts 22:4; Acts 26:11; 1 Corinthians 4:12; 1 Corinthians 15:9; 2 Corinthians 4:9; Galatians 1:13 & 23; Galatians 4:29; Galatians 5:11
Persecution of "the woman" who gave birth to the Messiah: Revelation 12:13
TRIBULATION OF NON-CHRISTIANS
There are only two verses in the New Testament referring to tribulation experienced by non-Christians:-
1. Of all who do evil: Romans 2:9.
2. Of the world as repayment for bringing tribulation upon the saints: 2 Thessalonians 1:6.
TRIBULATION OF APOSTLES OR CHRISTIANS:-
Matthew 13:21 (Parallel: Mark 4:17); Matthew 24:9 & 29 (Parallel Mark 13:24); John 16:33; Acts 11:19; Acts 14:22; Acts 20:23; Romans 5:3; Romans 8:35; Romans 12:12; 2 Corinthians 1:4, 6 & 8; 2 Corinthians 2:4; 2 Corinthians 4:8; 2 Corinthians 4:17; 2 Corinthians 6:4; 2 Corinthians 7:4-5; 2 Corinthians 8:2; Ephesians 3:13; Philippians 1:16; Philippians 4:14; Colossians 1:24; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 1 Thessalonians 3:3-4 & 7; 2 Thessalonians 1:4, 6-7; 2 Timothy 1:8; 2 Timothy 3:11; 2 Timothy 4:5; Hebrews 10:32-33; 1 Peter 5:9; Revelation 1:9; Revelation 2:9-10, 22; Revelation 7:14.
GREAT TRIBULATION
[Greek: mégas thlîpsis]
Mentioned
only three times in the New Testament:-
First mention: The Olivet Discourse: Matthew 24:21-22 (Parallel: Mark 13:19-20) *
"for then shall be mégas thlîpsis (great tribulation), such as has not been since the beginning of the world to this time; no, nor ever shall be.
And unless those days should be shortened, no flesh would be saved. But for the elect's sake, those days shall be shortened." (Also see Matthew 24:9).
"And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from the heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.
And then the sign of the Son of man shall appear in the heavens. And then all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of the heaven with power and great glory.
And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other." (Matthew 24:29-31).
Third mention: Revelation 7:13-14:
Revelation 7:9-10, 13-15
9 After these things I looked, and lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, out of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues, stood before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palms in their hands.
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb.
And one of the elders answered, saying to me, Who are these who are arrayed in white robes, and from where do they come?
And I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are the ones who came out of great tribulation [mégas thlîpsis] and have washed their robes, and have whitened them in the blood of the Lamb.
Therefore they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His temple. And He sitting on the throne will dwell among them.
They will not hunger any more, nor thirst any more, nor will the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will feed them and will lead them to the fountains of living waters. And God will wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Second mention: Revelation 2:21: "Behold, I will cast her (Jezebel) into a bed, and them (those Christians) that commit adultery with her into mégas thlîpsis (great tribulation), except they repent of their deeds."
* Luke 21:23 uses the words great distress and wrath to describe what was to come upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem (not the word tribulation).
The
Biblical authors only used the Greek words translating as
wrath whenever talking about God's judgment / wrath that is to come upon the world. And when they spoke about
tribulation and
great tribulation, they were talking about what is to come upon the saints at the hand of an unbelieving world and in the last days, at the hand of the beast.